Michael Jordan is currently locked in a standoff with NASCAR over the new charter deal. Despite 13 of the 15 teams agreeing to the new terms, 23XI’s decision to hold out gives an indication of the ambition Jordan has with his NASCAR team. This also suggests that he is quite serious about bringing a change in the sport and is prepared to stand his ground.

When Michael Jordan started 23XI Racing with Denny Hamlin in 2021 many were confused about how this would turn out. Jordan was more known for his exploits on the NBA court and investment in the Chicago Bulls than his knowledge of NASCAR and its world. But if you were to believe Tyler Reddick, the NBA icon is not just a figurehead for the 23XI team, but his knowledge about the sport is something to admire.

Tyler Reddick opens up on Michael Jordan’s love for NASCAR

Reddick already has the regular season championship in the bag and is now eyeing a Cup Series title. If he manages to pull it off, it will be a massive boost to 23XI and Jordan’s profile as the owner. While Jordan may have had his skeptics when he joined NASCAR first, his desire to improve sport and challenge the established order has already made news, but how is he as a team owner?

This is what Kevin Harvick wanted to know on the Happy Hour on Fox on September 11. Harvick asked Reddick, “What’s that been like to be around a superstar of that magnitude and watch him try to be, you know, an asset to the team and be involved and take all that in from your perspective?”

Tyler Reddick’s immediate response was, “Yeah, it’s really, really cool. Honestly, it’s something that’s hard to put into words, right?” Reddick revealed that Jordan comes with a lot of knowledge about racing, as he said, “It’s just really, really cool to see how passionate he is about racing, and just see how much he cares about this race team and watching it go in the right direction.”

Reddick explained that despite being from another sport, Jordan has picked up a lot of technical knowledge about NASCAR. “He really does love this sport. Just hearing his knowledge, the technical knowledge is growing day by day. Coming into it, he only had access to what he did, which was TV and what a normal fan would have access to.”

Reddick’s incredible success at 23XI also had a lot to do with Jordan, as the driver recollected on the podcast. Having joined the Huntersville-based team in 2022, Reddick had three seasons of full-time Cup Series experience with him. But before the 2023 season opener at Daytona, he and Bubba Wallace were discussing the speedway and Jordan popped in to tell Reddick that he was “terrible at speedway racing.”

According to Reddick, this spurred him on to become successful at his new team, “I took it the right way and I’m like alright, well I have some work to do. I have some extra motivation, I was already motivated to get better at speedway racing. When MJ calls you out about not being very good at it, it’s easy to find motivation to get better,” Reddick said.

During the podcast, Reddick also mentioned how Jordan absorbs information from the sport and “just seeing him just sponge all the information up that me and Bubba give to him, that the crew chiefs give to him, the leadership this company gives to him it’s just really really cool to see how bought in he is into this process.”

Like any shrewd businessman, Jordan understands the intricacies of how the setup he has invested in. His heart is with the sport and he seems to be enjoying every moment of it. But right now 23XI finds itself in a tricky situation. Last week 13 teams agreed to NASCAR’s new charter agreement, which offered an increased share in revenue, but other demands such as permanent charters, increased executive power, and a cut on business deals NASCAR does were left out. Only Jordan’s 23XI and Front Row Motorsports have refused to sign the charter.

23XI said they “did not have an opportunity to fairly bargain for a new charter contract” and have notified NASCAR of the issues they want to be addressed. This stance places Jordan and his team’s future in NASCAR at stake, with the current charter deal expiring at the end of this season.

Jordan has long been an advocate of change in NASCAR’s revenue model to open up opportunities for teams. In May, he told the New York Times, “To grow the pie, you’ve got to make sure everybody’s healthy within the partnership. If our ownership in NASCAR is losing money and NASCAR’s the only one making money, that’s not a good partnership.”

23XI is keen to expand its two-car operation. With SHR selling its charters, there is a window for Michael Jordan to make that move, but it seems the team co-owned by the NBA legend and Denny Hamlin wants NASCAR to revisit the new deal, especially in the case of permanent charters.

Unlike the NBA, NASCAR is a privately owned business model run by the France and Kennedy families. Teams are independent businesses that compete for sponsorships and success on the track. And unlike the NBA, the teams are not permanent franchises. They can lose their charters due to poor performances, lack of sponsors, and other reasons, which makes it a dicey proposition for others to invest.

Jordan addressed the lack of permanent charters in NASCAR to NYT and said, “That’s a big, big miss right there. If you don’t correct that, this sport’s going to die not because of the competition aspect, but because economically, it doesn’t make sense for any business people.”

Despite all this, Jordan’s love for the on-track action is growing. Earlier this month, during the race at Darlington, NBC Sports caught Jordan and asked him what he thought about NASCAR. To everyone’s surprise, Jordan explained, “I enjoy it. I don’t have basketball anymore, but this could replace it very easily. I’m excited for today.”

This revelation is something fans would never imagine saying, but at least it’s good to know that being a co-team owner, Jordan has his priorities straight and he would love nothing more than his team to win the Cup Series Championship. Jordan is not only a fan of the sport but one of the biggest supporters of his drivers, and looking at Reddick’s performance at Darlington, he had to share some words with the No. 45 driver.

Michael Jordan on Tyler Reddick’s season-winning performance despite illness

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While almost everyone knows that Tyler Reddick won the regular season championship, very few know that he was not well during the Darlington race. Reddick was severely ill with a stomach bug during the Cook Out Southern 500 but he still managed to finish 10th.

The finish was extremely important, as that is what led to Reddick ending the regular season just a point ahead of Kyle Larson. Knowing that his driver is unwell, Jordan told the media, “I mean, I know what it feels like to be sick and trying to perform, and just to do what he did, I mean, I wasn’t going around 200 miles an hour in a car, but I’m proud of his effort, and we needed it.”

As an athlete, Michael Jordan knows how it feels to be unwell and still want to compete. Overall, it’s a huge compliment for the driver to know that his team owner has been recognizing his efforts, and hopefully, once the 23XI Racing charter is settled, he can continue to race as a full-time driver beyond his contract, which ends in 2025.